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Online Diabetes Project Wins $1.2M Federal Grant

The Palo Alto Medical Foundation last month received a $1.2 million grant from the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality for a clinical study of an online diabetes management system that aims to lower costs, disability and premature death associated with diabetes, the Oakland Tribune reports.

Participants in the study over about three years will input blood glucose levels, food and exercise data into a Web site run by Palo Alto Medical Center. The site will track blood glucose levels over time and provide data on complications, such as heart disease or kidney failure, and blood sugar level changes. A control group will track the same data using a paper log and a food and exercise journal.

Paul Tang, chief medical information officer for the foundation, said the quick feedback from the Web site allows patients to see how the potential for risks -- including heart disease or losing a limb or eyesight -- changes over time.

Participants in the project also will be able to download health information via wireless devices, and another device will wirelessly upload blood sugar levels. The medical center plans to enroll 400 participants from Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties in the study.

AHRQ has awarded $210 million in grants for more than 150 projects that use IT to improve patient care nationwide (Bohan, Oakland Tribune, 11/5)

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